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Giants target series win over Twins by the Bay

Jun 23, 2011 - 2:35 PM (Sports Network) - After finding a way to cool off the red-hot Minnesota Twins on Wednesday, the San Francisco Giants will attempt to earn a series win over the surging 2010 American League Central champions when the two teams play the rubber match of a three-game set this afternoon at AT&T Park.

Minnesota registered its eighth consecutive victory and 15th triumph in a 17- game span with Tuesday's 9-2 rout of the Giants in which Ron Gardenhire's squad erupted for eight runs in the first inning. The Twins' bats weren't nearly as potent in last night's rematch, however, mustering just six hits off San Francisco pitching in a 5-1 loss.

Ryan Vogelsong shut down the Minnesota offense and continued his sensational comeback season by yielding just one run and four hits over the first seven innings. The journeyman right-hander, who hadn't pitched in the majors since 2006 prior to returning this season, improved to 5-1 and lowered his earned run average to 1.86 with the effort.

"The guy was pretty nasty," Gardenhire told MLB.com of Vogelsong. "He had a good two-seamer going, he's throwing 92 [mph] and he's painting the outside corner. When you started trying to sit on that thing, he was throwing some nice breaking balls and he had a good changeup, too. When you have a good mix like that, plus you're throwing gas and down at the knee, that's pretty tough."

Vogelsong got some offensive support from catcher Eli Whiteside, who belted a two-run triple in the second inning to give San Francisco a 2-0 lead and added an RBI single later on. Aubrey Huff also knocked in a run to help the Giants put a season-long five-game losing streak to an end. The defending World Series champions are a half-game behind Arizona for the NL West lead.

Michael Cuddyer finished 2-for-4 with a run scored for Minnesota, extending his hitting streak to 11 games. The versatile outfielder is batting .447 (17- for-38) with three homers and 11 RBI over the course of his tear.

Cuddyer and his teammates figure to face another tough challenge in today's finale, with the Giants set to send two-time National League Cy Young Award honoree Tim Lincecum to the hill. The All-Star hurler hasn't been putting together a vintage season, however, and comes into this afternoon's matchup having lost two straight starts to fall under .500 (5-6) for the year.

Lincecum was roughed up for seven runs and seven hits and issued four walks in just four innings of his last AT&T Park start, a 10-2 defeat to Cincinnati on June 11. He struggled with his command once again this past Friday in Oakland, walking five Athletics hitters in five innings, and took another loss after being touched for three runs (two earned).

"I was battling the whole time instead of cruising, which is what I'd like to do," Lincecum said after that game. "I've just go to do better."

The hard-throwing righty is just 1-2 with a mediocre 4.54 ERA in six home outings this season and will try to get back on track against a Minnesota team he's never faced before.

Brian Duensing gets the call for Minnesota in the finale and hopes that his recent pattern of performance doesn't continue into today's assignment.

Duensing has alternated bad and good starts over his last four appearances, with the most recent one being of the successful variety. One week after being torched for seven runs (three earned) and seven hits in two innings of a June 10 loss to Texas, the left-hander held San Diego to two runs over six solid innings to pick up his fourth win of 2011.

The 28-year-old fired eight shutout frames to best Kansas City on June 5 before faltering against the Rangers, but was tagged for six runs in a 4 2/3- inning no-decision at Detroit prior to his victory over the Royals.

For the year Duensing is 4-6 with a 4.82 ERA in 14 games (13 starts) and owns a 2-3 record with a 4.32 ERA in seven road starts. He has never previously opposed the Giants as well.

San Francisco won two of three bouts with the Twins when these teams last met at the Metrodome in 2005. Minnesota took two of three matchups from the Giants in their only prior trip to AT&T Park, which occurred in 2003.